Garment construction



June 17, 1952 MCDONALD 2,601,046

GARMENT CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 15, 1951 INVENTOR.

Patented June 17, 1952 GARMENT CONSTRUCTION Herman M. McDonald, Evanston, 111., assignor to Dorothy L. McDonald, Evanston, Ill.

Application February 15, 1951, Serial No. 211,153

4 Claims.

This invention relates to garments such as slipover type sweaters, T-shirts, and the like, and is directed more particularly to the collar construction of such garments.

It has been found with such garments, particularly T-shirts that, after repeated washing, the collars thereof become permanently stretched out of shape thereby impairing the appearance thereof. As a further consequence of the collar becoming deformed, the garment frequently will not fit properly and thus becomes uncomfortable to wear.

Thus it is one of the objects of this invention to provide a garment having a collar which will retain its proper shape and conform to the neck of the wearer even after repeated washing and wearing thereof.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a collar construction which has a neat and attractive appearance and will not cause unsightly bulges to occur when worn beneath another garment.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a collar construction which is strong and durable and able to withstand excessive wear.

Further and additional objects will appear from the description, accompanying drawings, and appended claims.

In accordance with one embodiment of this in-- vention a garment is provided comprising a body member made of yieldable fabric having a neckconforming edge. Embracing the edge and extending therefrom a predetermined distance on opposite sides of the body member is a reinforcing piece made of like fabric. The piece is stitched to the body member at one point adja cent the neck-conforming edge and at a, second point a predetermined distance from said edge. Partially embracing the piece is a fabric reinforcing element which is stitched to the piece and the body member at the first mentioned point.

For a more complete understanding of this invention reference should be made to the drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a, fragmentary perspective view of the garment shown being worn;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the garment showing sections of the collar turned back to expose the various portions thereof; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the garment taken along line 33 of Fig. 2.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to Fig. 1, a garment I0, which in this instance is a T-shirt, is shown having a collar I I thereof which is adapted to conform to the neck I2 of the wearer I3. The garment I0 is made of a yieldable fabric, such as a knitted cotton material, and comprises a body or shirt portion M having the upper edge I5 thereof rounded and shaped to conform substantially to the neck of the wearer I3. Mounted on body member I4 and embracing edge I5 is a reinforcing piece I6 which engages the opposite sides of the garment I4, as shown in Fig. 3. Piece I6 is made of the same material as body member I4 and has the side portions Ilia and I6?) thereof extending a predetermined distance from the edge I5 of member I4. A portion I 'I of the exposed side Isa is turned back under to form a hem. The turnedback portion I! is spaced a predetermined distance from edge I5 and is secured to member It by a double row of stitching I8. The turnedback portion I! of piece I6, co-operates with body member I4 to provide four-ply or quadruple thickness of material at the rows of stitching I8. The portion of garment I I between stitching I8 and edge I5 is of three-ply or triple thickness construction.

Mounted on piece I6 is a second reinforcing element 20 which is made of the same material as body member I4 and piece I6. Element 20 is adapted to embrace the portion of piece I 6 which is adjacent the edge I5 of member I4. The exposed side 2011 of element 20 is provided with a portion 2| which is turned back under to form a hem which is secured by a double row of stitching 22 to piece I6 and edge I5 of member I4. Hem portion 2| co-operates with piece I 6 and edge I5 to provide six-ply or sextuple thickness of material at the stitching 22. The effect of the six-ply and four-ply construction at stitchings 22 and I8, respectively, is to retain the proper shape of the collar.

The stitches I8 and 22 at the inside of the garment are zigzag or herringbone in form, as shown at I 8a and 22a, respectively, and firmly confine and secure the raw edges of the inside portions IGb and 20b of the piece I 6 and element 20, see Figs. 2 and 3.

The resiliency of the fabric allows the stitched portions of the collar to yield a suflicient amount so as to enable the wearer to readily slip the garment on or off. However, the combined resiliency of the sextuple or quadruple thickness of material causes the collar to resume its pro er shape once the head of the wearer I3 has passed therethrough. The reinforcing piece I6 and the element 20 also give added strength and durability to the garment I0 and materially increase the wearing qualities thereof. Furthermore, the reinforcing piece I6 and element 20 preserve the neat and attractive appearance of the garment II] and also co-operate with each other to make a pleasing collar design.

While Fig. 3 gives the impression that hem portions l1 and 2| tend to give a bulging appearance to the collar it should be understood that this is due entirely to the enlargement of the View and that in reality the thickness of the fabric is such that the protrusion of these hem portions would be negligible. Thus the garment may be readily worn as an under-garment without causing any noticeable bulges.

While the figures illustrate a T-shirt, it is to be understood, of course, that such collar construction may be readily adapted for use in other garments such as sweaters and the like.

It will be seen that a garment has been provided having a collar which will retain its proper shape and thus the neat and attractive appearance of the garment, even after excessive washing, is preserved. Furthermore, a collar construction is provided which will improve the wearing qualities of the garment.

While a particular embodiment of this invention has been shown, it will be understood, of course, that the invention is not to be limited thereto since many modifications may be made, and it is contemplated, therefore, by the appended claims to cover any such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A garment made of yieldable fabric comprising a fabric body member having a neckconforming edge, a first fabric-reinforcing piece embracing said edge and secured to sa id member along a first line adjacent said edge and along a second line spaced from said edge, and a second fabric reinforcing piece embracing that portion of said first reinforcing piece adjacent said edge and secured to said first piece and said body member along said first line.

2. A garment made of yieldable fabric comprising a fabric body member having a neckconforming edge, a fabric edge-embracing first piece attached to said member along .a first line adjacent said edge and along a second line spaced from said edge thereby effecting at least triple thickness of fabric between said lines of attachment, and a second fabric piece partially embracing said first piece and attached to said first piece and said body member adjacent said first line thereby effecting at least quintuple thickness of fabric adjacent the edge of said body member.

3. A garment made of yieldable fabric comprising a fabric body member having a neckconforming edge, a fabric edge-embracing first piece having sides depending downwardly on opposite sides of said body member for substantially the same distance and having a hem portion disposed on a lower edge of one side thereof, said hem portion and the lower edge of the opposite side of said first piece being secured to said body member along a line spaced from said edge to provide at least quadruple thickness of fabric along said line, and a second fabric piece partially embracing said first piece and having a second hem portion disposed on an edge of one side thereof adjacent said neck-conforming edge, said second hem portion and the opposite side of said second piece being secured to said first piece and said body member along another line adjacent said edge to provide at least sextuple thickness of fabric adjacent said edge.

4:. A garment having a neck opening and 001m prising a knitted fabric body member having a neck-conforming edge, a knitted fabric reinforcing first piece embracing said edge and secured to said member along a first line adjacent said edge and along another line spaced from said edge, and a knitted second piece embracing the portion of said first piece adjacent said edge and secured to said first piece and said member along said first line, the upper edge of said second piece being spaced a substantial distance above the upper edge of said first piece thereby providing only a double layer of fabric adapted to embrace the neck of the wearer.

HERMAN M. MCDONALD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,418,886 Irwin Apr. 15, 1947 2,520,227 Taber Aug. 29, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 318,286 Italy June 8, 1934 

